Scotland: The Pineapple
A 200-year-old folly in Stirlingshire, central Scotland, is topped by a 75ft stone pineapple. The fourth Earl of Dunmore built this strange pavilion in 1777 on returning from the New World. As Governor of Virginia, he'd heard that sailors would put a pineapple on a gatepost to announce their return home. Back in Scotland, Dunmore copied the custom with enthusiasm.

The Pineapple has no internal doors, which means you have to go outside to get from one room to another. It sleeps four and costs from £185 for a four-night break.

This is one of 200 restored historic properties rented by the Landmark Trust, a building conservation charity that rents out its properties. They include a former arsenic mine in Cornwall, apartments in the royal Hampton Court Palace near London, a turret in the city walls of Caernarfon, North Wales, a radio hut on the island of Lundy, an old railway station in Staffordshire and a water tower in Norfolk.

For more information, visit www.landmarktrust.co.uk

Northumberland: Chillingham Castle
Beneath the imposing stone battlements of one of England's finest medieval castles - comes complete with dungeon, torture chamber, banqueting hall and minstrels' gallery - are some historic holiday flats. These are squeezed into the spare spots around the fortress - including an 800-year-old lookout tower, the castle dairy and the old coaching stables. Features include a winding stone staircase, beamed Tudor galleries, ancient stone fireplaces and exquisite period furnishings, including some of the Grey family's valuable art collection. It costs from £252 a week (The Tower, sleeping up to four) and makes a great romantic retreat for couples.

For more information, visit www.chillingham-castle.com

Cornwall: Fort Polhawn
This is a 200-year-old military stronghold perched on the side of a Cornish cliff, with fabulous sea views over Plymouth Sound. It once housed a large garrison, so it can easily sleep 20.

It was built as a defence against a French invasion that never arrived. Guests enter through a working drawbridge and granite spiral staircase: the eight-foot thick walls were designed to withstand a naval bombardment. Four-night breaks cost from £995 for the whole fort. The seven 64-pounder guns may no longer be in their emplacements in the living room, but one is still in the garden in case any passing pirates cause trouble.

For more information, visit www.polhawn-fort.co.uk

Oxfordshire: The Dovecote
An 18th century octagonal dovecote seems an unlikely place to spend the night but this important historical monument has recently been voted one of the most romantic places to stay in Britain.

With meter-thick stonewalls, it was once home to hundreds of pigeons who became a handy source of winter meat in the grounds of Buckland House, near the university city of Oxford. It has been beautifully restored with a sauna, double shower, underfloor heating, and a huge lantern window - but the most memorable feature is the ancient rotating ladder that still gives access to the 1,100 brick nesting boxes. A two-day stay for a couple costs from £225.

For more information, visit www.the-dovecote.co.uk

Herefordshire: The Triumphal Arch
This imposing arched gatehouse provides a grand entrance over the drive at Berrington Hall, an 18th century stately home in parkland designed by Lancelot 'Capability' Brown. From January to July each year, however, part of the park is closed due to the heron-breeding season. The Arch sleeps four, costs from £114 for two nights.

For more information, visit www.nationaltrust.org.uk

Northern Ireland: Downhill Holiday Home
Situated on the Causeway coast of Northern Ireland (40 minutes from Donegal), this modern coastal cottage is completely self-sufficient - thanks to a windmill generator. The remote house is positioned between two gentle waterfalls, with spectacular views of the sea, cliffs and dunes on Downhill Strand - a delightful, seven-mile long sandy beach. It sleeps up to six and costs from £250 per week.

For more information, visit www.lamb.dog.freeservers.com

Devon: St Michael and All Angels
Here's a chance to appreciate a lovely Victorian village church - by sleeping in it. Local landowner, the Earl of Portsmouth, built the church of Hollocombe's in rural Devon, in 1890. St Michael's still has its bell tower, arched stained glass windows, and ornate stone corbels. Now it's been turned into a home with three bedrooms and a bathroom. It sleeps six and costs from £426 per week.

For more information, visit www.classic.co.uk

Yorkshire: The Pigsty
This Yorkshire oddity was built by an eccentric local squire after he'd been to the Mediterranean in the 1880s. He used timber Doric columns and a neo-classical facade to decorate what must be the world's most ornate pigsty. The property is now in the hands of the Landmark Trust which admits: "We have made it acceptable to a higher breed of inhabitant; and although the living quarters will never be palatial, the view over hills and towards Robin Hood's Bay... is undoubtedly fit for an empress." It sleeps two and costs from £164 for a four-night break.

For more information, visit www.landmarktrust.co.uk

Norfolk and Yorkshire: Railway hideaways
Surely this is every rail traveller's dream holiday home - a station waiting room all to themselves? The Old Station Waiting Room in Heacham in Norfolk sleeps two from £182 a week and comes complete with a platform and Victorian canopy from the days of the old Great Eastern Railway.

For those who prefer a holiday on rails, head for the Old Station at Allerston, North Yorkshire. Guests stay in one of three railway carriages, which have been refurbished as self-catering holiday homes complete with kitchens, bathrooms and beds for up to six people, from £234 a week. Clothes washing and drying facilities are freely available in the "Staff Tool Van" alongside.

For more information, visit www.cottageguide.co.uk

Wales: Bardsey Island
This rugged island off the coast of North Wales has been a place of Christian pilgrimage for more than 1,000 years. It's now a carefully preserved wildlife haven with no concessions to modern convenience.

Guests must travel two miles to the island in an open boat (weather permitting) and are carried to their old stone holiday homes on a trailer pulled by a tractor. There are no electricity or gas services so they must use candles, torches, portable gas cookers and chemical toilets. A stay at a Bardsey holiday home is guaranteed to be primitive but is surprisingly popular. And it's not expensive - from just £90 a week including a boat from the mainland.

For more information, visit www.bbfo.org.uk

Shropshire: The Temple
A secluded 18th century folly on a wooded cliff top overlooking spectacular rural views near Bridgnorth in the Severn Valley - the Temple is a neo-classical oddity. Once used by its wealthy builder for occasional tea parties, now the Vivat Trust (another charity dedicated to conserving Britain's architectural heritage) has restored it as a holiday home. It sleeps two, costing from £270 for three nights.

For more information, visit www.vivat.org.uk